SCHOLLAR, Ernest Lindsay
| Service Number: | 5403 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 31 December 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 25th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Liverpool, ENGLAND, date not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farm Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 3 May 1917, age not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Colinton War Memorial, Esk War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 31 Dec 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5403, 25th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Aug 1916: | Involvement Private, 5403, 25th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Itonus embarkation_ship_number: A50 public_note: '' | |
| 8 Aug 1916: | Embarked Private, 5403, 25th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Itonus, Brisbane |
Help us honour Ernest Lindsay Schollar's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Ian Lang
#5403 SCHOLLAR Ernest Lindsay 25th Battalion
Ernest Schollar was born in Liverpool around 1890. There is very little information about Ernie as to when or where he arrived in Australia, suffice it to say that at the time of his enlistment, it can be assumed that he was working as a farm labourer in the Harlin – Colinton district.
Ernie attended the Brisbane recruiting depot on 31st December 1915. He advised that he had attempted to enlist previously but was rejected due to bad teeth and bad feet. Obviously, the medical examiner on the second occasion was of a different view and Ernie was accepted into the AIF. He stated he was 25 years old and named his father, Ernest Schollar of Aintree, Liverpool, as his next of kin. Ernie was sent to the Enoggera Camp where he was placed in a depot battalion before being added to the ranks of the 14threinforcements of the 25th Battalion.
The 150 men in the 14th reinforcements embarked on the Itonus in Brisbane on 8th August 1916 and disembarked at Plymouth in Devon on 18th October. The reinforcements made their way to the 7th Brigade Training Battalion at Sutton Veney. Ernie was added to a draft of reinforcements that crossed the English Channel to Etaples on 14th December. He remained at Etaples until 5th February when he proceeded via Amiens and Albert to Flers where the 25th Battalion, part of the 7th Brigade of the 2nd Division AIF was holding the line during the severe winter. The battalion rotated between front line, rest and support trenches for most of February. The same routine was repeated when the battalion moved up to Le Sars.
In the lull in fighting of the 1916/17 winter, the Germans had constructed a 150 kilometre long defensive barrier, which they named the Seigfreid Position but the British labelled the Hindenburg Line. The position was some distance to the east of their previous positions astride the Somme. As the German forces began a strategic withdrawal to this new position, the British forces cautiously followed, taking the towns of Bapaume and Noreuil along the way. By the first week in April, elements of the 5th British Army under General Gough, which included two Australian divisions, came up against the Hindenburg defences at Bullecourt.
The first assault on the Hindenburg Line, referred to as 1st Bullecourt, was a complete failure. The general had been persuaded to dispense with the usual preliminary artillery barrage in favour of tanks which either broke down, got lost or made easy targets for German gunners. A second attempt, following the more accepted practice of soaking the area with artillery before the assault, was planned, along with a massive increase in manpower of 14 divisions (one of which was the 2nd Division AIF). 2nd Bullecourt began on 3rdMay. Two brigades from the 2nd Division, the 5th and 6th began the advance with the 7th brigade in support. The 5th Brigade encountered heavy fire which stopped them in their tracks. The commander on the ground called for extra support and two companies from the 25th Battalion were ordered up to the front. In spite of being reinforced twice more, the attacking Australians could make no headway. A message to the attackers suggested that they should take advantage of any opportunity to advance. The pointlessness of such a message is indication of how much the command knew, and finally the order was given to withdraw. The withdrawal was completed under withering machine gun and rifle fire and many dead and wounded Australians were left on the battlefield.
When the 25th Battalion survivors could regroup to count the casualties, 27 men had been killed and 136 wounded. Among those killed was Ernest Schollar. It would appear that by that time, Ernest’s next of kin, his father, was also deceased. Any attempts to correspond with next of kin regarding his son’s death were returned. Ernest’s remains were never located and his service medals were never claimed. memorial
In 1938, some 20 years after the end of the First World War, the Australian Government constructed the Australian National Memorial at Villers Bretonneux. The memorial was dedicated by the newly crowned King George VI. The memorial records the names of over 10,000 Australian soldiers who lost their lives in France and have no known grave; Ernest Schollar among them.